December 2004 RAP
December 2004 Highlights
Feature: Twists and Turns
By Michael R. Lee, Ph.D.
As radio twists and turns amid a litany of changes, it is becoming, not
coincidentally, more entertaining. Not really to those who listen to it, but
more to those who are practitioners of a once dynamic art.
Interview: Walter Koschnitzke - Dreammakers Productions,
Kenosha, Wisconsin
By Jerry Vigil
No doubt, more and more radio stations are finding the value in paying
more attention to their direct clients needs rather than how much of their
budget they can get and how fast you, the prod god, can get their spot on
the air. This months RAP Interview visits with another Wizard Of Ads
graduate and partner who is overseeing another station subsidiary whose goal
is creating effective advertising for the stations direct accounts. Walter
Koshnitzke is the General Manager of DreamMakers Productions, based in
Kenosha, Wisconsin, which serves not only the NextMedia stations in the
market, but advertisers and stations in other markets as well. As with
Zimmer Radios Soundbrands in Columbia, Missouri [October 2004 RAP Interview
with Tim Miles], DreamMakers is another perfect example of how radio can
generate substantial revenues while charging for creative AND, at the same
time, truly help their clients make money. Want to talk about a "win/win"
situation? Read this month's RAP Interview.
Radio Hed: Talent Limitations
By Jeffrey Hedquist
Is your talent pool a little too shallow? You're frustrated. You've
written a great spot, but you know your available talent isn't going to be
able to pull it off, or they're over-exposed in your market. So what do you
do? Try to make do with the same old voices? Replace the spot with another
less talent-dependent spot? Tear out what's left of your hair? Scream? Throw
a tantrum? Assuming the tantrum doesn't work, try looking (listening)
around. Where might new voices be hiding?
Test Drive: Eureka from PreSonus
By Steve Cunningham
PreSonus has been around for almost ten years, making moderately priced
microphone preamplifiers as well as outboard EQ and compressors. Id used a
PreSonus eight-channel pre several years ago, and while it was good for the
price it, didn't have enough clean gain for low-output dynamic mics like the
RE-20. Nevertheless, I was intrigued when PreSonus announced an optional 192
kHz AES output card for their Eureka mic processor, and Id heard good things
about the box from colleagues. So this month well look at yet another entry
in the low-cost "channel strip" category, the PreSonus Eureka.
Production 212: Save Room for Dessert
By Dave Foxx
I got a really interesting request from a reader a few weeks ago to
critique his demo and provide suggestions for improvement. Being my usual
brain-dead self after putting in several hours sweating over a hot console,
I couldn't quite put my finger on what his demo needed at first. I knew it
didn't sound right even though the VO was strong, and the music and effects
all sounded first rate. He complained that his production just didn't have
the power of most of what he was hearing on the RAP CD. I was in agreement,
but couldn't figure out why.
Q It Up: The RAP Network Speaks - What production
libraries do you use for commercial production?
Q It Up: This question is for the commercial producers
out there. What production music libraries and/or services are your
favorites for producing commercials? What do you like about these libraries?
How easy is it to find the music you need? Do any of your libraries offer
extensive track mixouts that permit you to remix the track to fit your
needs, and do you take advantage of this to any degree? What improvements,
if any, would you like to see in your production libraries, or in production
libraries in general?
Feature: Christmas TIME
By Ed Thompson
I have five children ranging in age from 26 years to 5 months old. I have
2 grandchildren from 8 to 4 years old. I have a full-time job writing and
producing for eight radio stations. I have part-time freelance jobs. I have
a wife who has a full-time job. We both have commitments to church,
business, and social groups. Time is more valuable than a trade agreement
with a jewelry store. During Christmastime, it becomes more valuable than a
chain of jewelry stores.
The Monday Morning Memo: Name Recognition Isn't Branding
By Roy H. Williams
"Getting your name out" isn't worth much when there's no mental image
attached to your name. Unaided recall and top-of-mind awareness are
excellent ways to measure name recognition, but they don't tell you anything
about the strength of a brand. York, Lennox, Rheem, RUUD, Carrier, Bryant,
Trane, Armstrong, Friedrich and Fedders are leading brands of air
conditioners; you've probably heard of some of them. But do you have
significant feelings about any of these companies? Although their executives
would never believe it and their advertising agencies would violently deny
it, these companies branding initiatives have failed.
...And Make It Real Creative:
By Trent Rentsch
And now, a holiday interlude
(sung to the tune of Jingle Bells)
Plowing through Discreps,
A five-page "not here" day,
Over to Sales I go,
Growling all the way,
Phones just ring and ring,
Not a Rep in sight,
If they don't get their copy in,
Well miss more spots tonight,
OH!
Jingle Hell, Jingle Hell,
Missing spots all day,
What pain it is to find,
A Rep who goes away Hey!
Jingle Hell, Jingle Hell,
Selling, so they say,
But I bet they just went home,
While Ill be here till May!
(...and many more!)
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